The invention relates to the emergency escape from a boat and, more particularly, to the emergency escape of a boater from a kayak-type boat wherein the boater is seated in a cockpit of the boat and surrounded by a small cockpit opening.
Typically kayaks and other small boats with cockpit openings have been provided where the boater is seated in a cockpit of the boat defined by a lower hull and upper deck. The cockpit opening may range from an opening just large enough to permit the boater to enter the boat and sit to a larger opening wherein the ingress and egress of the boater is not restricted. Even in larger opening cockpits, the opening is often covered by canvas or other material to prevent the entry of water into the interior of the boat.
In a kayak, the boater is typically wearing a spray skirt which fits about his waist and is elastically secured to a rim of the cockpit opening which encircles the periphery of the opening. This prevents the entry of water into the boat.
In either of the above cases, in certain emergency situations the boater must be able to escape the boat quickly and safely. Due to the small cockpit in a kayak this problem is increased. Kayaks traveling swiftly down water with fast currents have been known to strike rocks and other abutments such as bridge columns. The boater can slide forward on impact if his feet slip off of the foot braces. In a kayak the boater can become jammed into the forward section of the kayak making it difficult for him to escape from the relatively small cockpit opening. This is particularly a problem where the boater is wearing a spray skirt fitted around the cockpit opening.
Accordingly, provision of a cockpit for a kayak and the like boats from which a boater may escape during an emergency is a problem to which considerable attention need be given.
Accordingly, an important object of the present invention is to provide an egress opening for a boat having a small cockpit opening from which the boater may reliably escape during an emergency.
Still another important object of the present invention is to provide a breakaway cockpit opening for a kayak constructed from a flexible fin material wherein the boater may break away a portion of the deck of the kayak and escape the small diameter cockpit opening during emergencies.
Still another important object is to provide a breakaway cockpit for a kayak which is waterproof.